Cricket Features

Cricket News November 2006

India South Africa Cricket Series 2006-07

Sourav Ganguly recalled for Test Series

Nov 30, 2006

Ten months after Sourav
Ganguly was unceremoniously dropped from the national
side, the former India captain was on Thursday included
in the Test squad for South Africa.
Chairman of Selectors Dilip Vengsarkar said the Indian batting had failed in the one-dayers in South Africa and that is why "experienced players have been brought back".
V V S Laxman, who was rushed to South Africa to replace an injured Rahul Dravid, was also named as vice captain of the Indian test team.
Other players who have found a place in the Test squad include Delhi opener Gautam Gambhir and Punjab pacer V R V Singh.
The first Test of the three-match series starts on December 15.
India test team : Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, V V S Laxman, Wasim Jaffer, Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, M S Dhoni, Dinesh Karthick, Sachin Tendulkar, Irfan Pathan, Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh, Munaf Patel, Zaheer Khan, S Sreesanth

Fourth ODI @ St George's Park : Unbeatable 3-0 lead for South Africa

Nov 29, 2006

South Africa scored yet another emphatic victory, by 80 runs, over India in the fourth ODI at Port Elizabeth to take an unbeatable 3-0 lead in the series with one game to play. Herschelle Gibbs scored 93 to take South Africa to 243 and their bowlers triggered yet another Indian collapse, skitting them for a mere 163 in just 38.1 overs. Veteran leg-spinner Anil Kumble was the pick of the bowlers with 2-42 of 10 overs. Zaheer Khan and Sreesanth turned in fine performances at either end of the innings but that was not enough to beat South Africa.Reported Earlier :
South Africa captain Graeme Smith won the toss for the third match in a row and decided to bat against India. For India, Sehwag is the acting captain as Rahul Dravid is out because of a broken finger.
Wasim Jaffer replaced him and they also dropped spinner Harbhajan Singh for the match in Port Elizabeth. India trail 2-0 after two crushing defeats.
India XI : Jaffer, Verendra Sehwag (Captain), SR Tendulkar, M Kaif, KD Karthik, MS Dhoni, IK Pathan, AB Agarkar, Z Khan, A Kumble, S Sreesanth
South Africa XI : Graeme Smith (Captain), LL Bosman, JH Kallis, HH Gibbs, AB de Villiers, JM Kemp, MV Boucher, SM Pollock, AJ Hall, A Nel, M Ntini

Sourav Ganguly likely to be recalled

Nov 29, 2006

Faced with growing criticism on the performance of the Indian team in South Africa and the failure of the youngsters to deliver, the national selectors are likely to fall back on the experience of Sourav Ganguly to bolster the middle order and the spirit of the side in the forthcoming three-Tests series.

Rahul Dravid ruled out of ODI series

Third ODI at Newlands : India loses by 106 runs as Kemp shines

Nov 26, 2006

South Africa wrapped up the second ODI by 106 runs to go 2-0 up with two more ODIs left in the series. Zaheer Khan's good opening burst was neutralized by Justin Kemp's unbeaten 100*, his maiden in ODIs. The total of 274 was just too much for the Indians, for whom only Rahul Dravid and MS Dhoni could get going. Shaun Pollock finished with a fine 4 for 26, while Hall backed his batting heroics with 3 for 45. Earlier, a superb display of power hitting from Justin Kemp inspired South Africa to 274-7 in the third one-dayer, after India had reduced them to 76-6. Zaheer Khan took 3-42, but Irfan Pathan and Ajit Agarker went for more than seven an over as Kemp hit out late on.
India XI: Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid (Captain), Mohammad Kaif, Dinesh Karthik, Mahendra Dhoni, Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, Ajit Agarkar, Zaheer Khan, Anil Kumble.
South Africa XI: Graeme Smith (Captain), Loots Bosman, Herschelle Gibbs, Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers, Mark Boucher, Justin Kemp, Shaun Pollock, Andrew Hall, Makhaya Ntini, Charl Langeveldt.

Munaf out of Third ODI at Newlands

Nov 25, 2006

India have ruled pace bowler Munaf Patel out of Sunday's third one-day international against South Africa but hope Virender Sehwag will return. Patel, who took two wickets in defeat on Wednesday, has a sore left ankle.
South Africa defeated India by a whopping 157 runs - the Proteas' biggest win ever over India - at the Kingsmead Stadium Wednesday to take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series. The capitulation raised a furore in India and the BCCI president Sharad Pawar reacted by asking chairman of selectors Dilip Vengsarkar to go to South Africa for the three-match Test series.

Second ODI @ Kingsmead : South Africa win after skittling India for 91

Nov 21, 2006

Jacques Kallis hit a commanding century and then took three wickets as South Africa beat India by 157 runs in the second one-day international in Durban.Sachin Tendulkar (35) top-scored for India in a dire batting display.
Earlier South Africa made 248/8 in 50 overs after winning the toss and electing to bat first. Kallis made 119 in 160 balls, while Zaheer Khan, Patel and Agarkar took two wickets each for India.
Reported Earlier: Much like the first one-day international, the second match between India and South Africa here Wednesday is most likely to be affected by thundershowers as per the forecast of the meteorological department.
India Team (from): Rahul Dravid (Captain), Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Wasim Jaffer, Mohammad Kaif, Suresh Raina, Dinesh Mongia, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Dinesh Karthik (wicket-keepers), Irfan Pathan, Zaheer Khan, Anil Kumble, S. Sreesanth, Harbhajan Singh, Munaf Patel and Ajit Agarkar
South Africa Team (from): Graeme Smith (Captain), Jacques Kallis, Loots Bosman, Mark Boucher (wicket-keeper), A.B. de Villiers, Boeta Dippenaar, Herschelle Gibbs, Andrew Hall, Justin Kemp, Charl Langeveldt, Andre Nel, Makhaya Ntini, Shaun Pollock and Robin Peterson

Second one-day international, Durban: South Africa 248-8 beat India 91 all out

BCCI Cricket News

Win and flourish or flop and lose money

Nov 25, 2006

The performance-related match fee structure for Indian players that is being mooted by the Cricket Board would be based on overall performance of the team and not on individual displays, a BCCI official said on Saturday.

India's South Africa tour begins today

Latest India Cricket News

School boys score 721 runs in record partnership

Nov 16, 2006

Two schoolboys in Hyderabad set a record partnership on Wednesday, evoking memories of a similar knock between batting great Sachin Tendulkar and Vinod Kambli nearly two decades ago.
Openers Manoj Kumar and Mohammad Shaibaz Tumbi both scored triple centuries and put on 721 runs as they batted through a full 40 overs in an under-13s inter-school limited-overs match.
Local journalists were quick to recall the 1988 exploits of a teenage Tendulkar and Kambli, who both hit triple centuries in Mumbai's Harris Shield schools competition.
Tendulkar and Kambli put on a record 664 runs for the third wicket for Shardashram against St Xavier's.
Tendulkar went on to make his Test debut as a cherub-faced 16-year-old the following year and Kambli made his one-day debut in 1991.
Manoj scored 320 off 127 balls and Tumbi 324 off 116 balls for St Peter's School and they ran up the highest total, highest partnership and eventually the highest margin of victory (700 runs) in any class of the limited-overs game.
A stunned St Phillip's School were bundled out for a paltry 21 in just seven overs.

India South Africa Cricket Series 2006-07

Indian team departs for South Africa

Nov 14, 2006

A 16-member Indian cricket team left for South Africa early on Tuesday morning. The two-month tour will include five one-dayers and three tests.

Key players need to perform

Nov 12, 2006

In a grim message ahead of the big engagements, including the World Cup, captain Rahul Dravid on Saturday sought to blame his "key players" for the Indian team's slump and said it was high time they delivered.

Latest India Cricket News

Yuvraj Singh to undergo fitness test

Nov 12, 2006

Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh will undergo a fitness test in the capital on Monday under the guidance of team physio John Gloster and BCCI's orthopedic consultant Dr Anant Joshi.
Yuvraj suffered a cruciate ligament damage in his right knee during the ICC Champions Trophy.
He has already been ruled out of the five match ODI series against South Africa beginning next Sunday.
His participation in the back-to-back ODI series against West Indies and Sri Lanka and the World Cup will now depend on him passing a fitness test and just how long his recovery will take.

Former Indian captain Polly Umrigar passed away

Nov 08, 2006

Former Indian captain Polly Umrigar died on Tuesday. He was ailing from cancer for almost a year.
A six-footer and powerfully built, Polly Umrigar was a veritable giant in Indian cricket both for his physical attributes and his achievements in the field.
Beginning his Test career against the West Indies at Bombay in 1948-49, Polly Umrigar played 59 matches and scored 3631 runs including 12 centuries and 14 half centuries for an average of 42.22.
An accurate off spinner, Poly changed to medium pace while opening the bowling for India.
He was the first Indian to hit a Test double century.
Polly Umrigar was the first Indian run machine before the arrival of Sunil Gavaskar in the scene.
When he decided to call it quits, after a career spanning 14 years, Polly was in possession of all Indian batting records most Tests, most runs, most hundreds. A shrewd captain, he led India in eight Tests with a tally of two wins, two losses and four matches drawn.
He is only one of two Indian cricketers to score a century and take five wickets in an innings a feat he achieved against West Indies at Port of Spain in 1962.
He was born on March 28, 1926 in Sholapur.

Sachin Watch

Sachin Tendulkar signs up with Canon

Nov 07, 2006

Sachin Tendulkar has signed another multi-million dollar deal even as Team India gets ready to rake in more moollah with the 2007 World Cup.

Sachin hits out at Aussies

Nov 06, 2006

Sachin Tendulkar has indirectly hit out at triumphant Australian captain Ricky Ponting and his teammates' behaviour during the prize distribution ceremony after the ICC Champions Trophy final against the West Indies at the Brabourne Stadium.

The Ashes Cricket Series 2006 - 07

Final Ashes tickets go on general sale

Nov 06, 2006

Desperate supporters will have a chance to get their hands on treasured Ashes tickets from Wednesday when more than 26,000 tickets for the five tests go on general sale, Cricket Australia said on Monday.

ICC Champions Trophy, Mumbai:
West Indies 138 all out

Australia determined to break Champions Trophy jinx

Australia's quest for their elusive Champions Trophy will face its toughest challenge when they take on the unpredictable and defending champions West Indies at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai on Sunday.
Both team captains are equally determined to win the coveted trophy. World Champions Australia, appearing in the final for the first time, have a slight edge over the Caribbeans with a five man pace attack.
West Indies, who had to suffer the ignominy of qualifying to defend their title, will be helped by the convincing victory over South Africa in the semifinals.
In the last four matches they played, they are 2-2, with West Indies winning the encounter in the group stages by 10 runs as Australia fell short of Windies' score of 234 for 6.
West Indies (from) Chris Gayle, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Brian Lara (Captain), Dwayne Bravo, Runako Morton, Dwayne Smith, Marlon Samuels, Carlton Baugh (Wicket Keeper), Ian Bradshaw, Jerome Taylor.
Australia (from) Shane Watson, Adam Gilchrist (Wicket Keeper), Ricky Ponting, Damien Martyn, Andrew Symonds, Michael Hussey, Michael Clarke, Brad Hogg, Brett Lee, Nathan Bracken, Glenn McGrath.

First Semi-Final, AUS vs NZ: Australia in Finals

Nov 01, 2006

Australia reached their first Champions Final with a 34-run victory over New Zealand in Mohali. They made 240/9 in 50 overs in the first semifinal on Wednesday and then restricted New Zealand to 206 with 4 overs to spare. Australia recovered from 4-2 as Ricky Ponting and Andrew Symonds both hit 58s, but lost wickets at regular intervals. Chasing 241 for victory, the Kiwis tumbled to 35-6, Glenn McGrath taking 3-22 in a 10-over spell. Jacob Oram (43) and Daniel Vettori (79) shared a seventh-wicket stand of 103 and the lower order kept thrashing boundaries. The loss put an end to New Zealand hopes of another shot at the title they won in Kenya six years ago.
Australia (Playing XI) : Ricky Ponting (Captain), Adam Gilchrist, Nathan Bracken, Michael Clarke, Mitchell Johnson, Michael Hussey, Brett Lee, Damien Martyn, Glenn McGrath, Shane Watson, Andrew Symonds.
New Zealand (Playing XI) : Stephen Fleming (Captain), Nathan Astle, Lou Vincent, Brendon McCullum, Peter Fulton, Hamish Marshall, Kyle Mills, Jacob Oram, James Franklin, Daniel Vettori, Shane Bond.

Adam Gilchrist sets record

Oct 30, 2006

Australia's Adam Gilchrist
is better known for his explosive batting than his wicketkeeping
but he secured a special place in the history of the game's
glovemen yesterday.
The scorer of 30 centuries in Tests and one-day internationals, Gilchrist has become the first wicketkeeper to reach 400 dismissals in one-dayers.
Gilchrist, 34, achieved the milestone when he accepted a chance off Glenn McGrath's bowling to remove Indian hero Sachin Tendulkar for 10 in their Group-A Champions Trophy clash in Mohali.
Gilchrist, who boasts 16 hundreds in 85 Tests (5,124 runs at 48.80 overall) and 14 centuries in 255 one-day internationals (8,358 at 36.49), is also closing in on Queenslander Ian Healy's Test record of 395 dismissals.

India South Africa Cricket Series 2006-07

Indian team for South Africa tour announced

Oct 30, 2006

Baroda paceman Zaheer Khan and ace spinner Anil Kumble today made a comeback to India's one-day squad for the tour of South Africa starting next month.
Test opener Wasim Jaffer was also named in the 16-member squad announced here by Cricket Board Secretary Niranjan Shah.
Injured duo of Ajit Agarkar and Yuvraj Singh were included in the squad subject to passing a fitness test.
In case they fail to pass the fitness test, their places would be taken by VRV Singh and Dinesh Kaarthick respectively.
The fitness test will take place on November 10, nine days before the team embarks for South Africa.
Indian ODI Squad Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid (Captain), Wasim Jaffer, Mohammad Kaif, Suresh Raina, Dinesh Mongia, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (Wicket Keeper), Irfan Pathan, Yuvraj Singh (Dinesh Karthik on stand-by), Zaheer Khan, Anil Kumble, Sreesanth, Harbhajan Singh, Munaf Patel, Ajit Agarkar (VRV Singh on stand-by).